WESLEYAN HERITAGE Library
Holiness Writers
ETERNAL SECURITY
TRUE AND FALSE
(A Tract)
By
Rev. E. E. Shelhamer
“Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without
which no man shall see the Lord” Heb 12:14
Spreading Scriptural Holiness to the World
Wesleyan Heritage Publications
© 1997, 1998
ETERNAL SECURITY
True and False
by
Rev. E. E. Shelhamer
A Tract
Published by God's Bible School 1810 Young St., Cincinnati, O.
[THIS TEXT IS IN PUBLIC DOMAIN]
Yes, we firmly believe in conditional security; that is, if one meets certain conditions, and
continues as he began, he "shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). "Once saved, always saved," is true as long
as a believer actually believes and walks in all the light. But of course you can readily see that
unconditional security is a gross absurdity; for one to say he is a believer while living like an
unbeliever is as false as for a black man to declare that he is white. [This seems to be a rather
ill-chosen comparison, but I leave it as written. -- DVM]
1. But do I hear you say, "Once a son, always a son. He may be disobedient, yet he is a son"? This
sounds nice, but is a false analogy and untrue to fact. Let us see! When he was first born, he had no
choice as to time or place; he became a son without his knowledge or volition. Net so when he was
born again. Then he voluntarily chose to enter the family of God; and since he did not lose the right
of choice, he could, like Demas, leave as he entered (2 Tim. 4:10). He was inducted into the kingdom
by an act of faith, of his own free will. Strange, then, that if he once had the power to decide he
should suddenly forfeit it and become a spiritual idiot, incapable of decision. Hence he is now a mere
machine, a nonentity, and consequently irresponsible regardless of what he does. "If he sins," say
they, "he may lose fellowship, but not his standing with God; for he is still God's child though
sinning every day in word, thought, and deed." What an insult to his intelligence and to a good God
who gave him the highest of all gifts -- Free Moral Agency!
2. "I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out
of my hand" (John 10:28). Here is a blessed passage, and multitudes have proven that no man can
cause another to be lost. But, on the other hand, let Adam Clarke speak: "They who continue to hear
Christ's voice, and to follow Him, shall never perish. Now it is evident that only those who have
Christ living in and governing their souls, so that they possess the mind that was in Him, are His
sheep; these shall never perish. Therefore to talk of a man's being one of the elect, one that shall
never perish or be plucked out of the hand of God while he lives in sin, is as contrary to common
sense as it is to the nature ... and testimonies of the Most High. Final perseverance implies final
faithfulness -- 'He that endureth to the end shall be saved'; 'He that is faithful unto death shall have
a crown of life.' And will any man attempt to say that he who does not endure to the end, and is
unfaithful, shall ever enter into life?" How absurd!
3. "Abide in me, and I in you. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is
withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned" (John 15:4, 6).
Mark! This branch was not tied on, but had living connection and for a while was fruitful. Then, for
some reason Christ declared it "withered" and it ceased to bear; hence it was cut off and burned,
rather than let the blight spread to other branches. If language means anything, this lesson teaches
the sad possibility of final apostasy.
4. The author of Hebrews must have believed in falling away, for the epistle abounds with such
terms as, "Let us fear"; "Take heed"; "Consider!" We read, "It is impossible for those who were once
enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and
have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to
renew them again unto repentance: seeing [while] they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh,
and put him to an open shame" (Heb. 6:4-6).
Peter fell, but Jesus caught him, as He does many today. Judas fell, not only on deck, but
overboard, and plunged so far that his recovery became impossible (1 John 5:16). Dear reader, take
warning!
"But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth
according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that
he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he
hath sinned, in them shall he die" (Ezek. 18:24). No juggling or wresting of the Scriptures here, by
saying this is from the Old Testament; or by asserting that King Saul, Judas and others lost their
lives, but not their souls.
Dr. D. G. Barnhouse, a prominent Keswick speaker, says: "God has offered pardon in advance
for any sins which might be committed by the believer. I have no doubt that Ananias and Sapphira,
as well as the Old Testament characters of whom we have spoken, were saved people. When death
came to them from the hand of God, I believe they went directly to Heaven.
"Christ's righteousness is imputed to all believers, even though they may be performing outright
sins. God does not reckon their sin to them but regards them as righteous instead, because Christ's
righteousness is reckoned to their account."
Again, "Judas fell from his high office, but not from grace. Being elect, 'his own place' (Acts 1:2)
was Heaven, and to Heaven he went."
This shows to what amazing lengths men will wrest the Scriptures in order to try to prove a false
and damnable doctrine.
"Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor. 10:12). "I am afraid of you, lest
I have bestowed upon you labor in vain" (Gal. 4:11). These words of Paul were useless, and there
was no need for this warning, if believers cannot fall and finally be lost.
The sad crux of this whole controversy is that those who hold to the Calvinistic view limit the
atonement, and do not believe with Paul, Wesley, Fletcher, and a host of others in the total
destruction of and deliverance from inbred sin. Too bad that carnal preachers and professors today
join hands with the first "Liar" when he said, "You can disobey God, and yet 'not surely die.' "
Joseph H. Smith well said, "No man is eternally secure until he is secure in eternity."